Nov 6, 2010

Fusion acts weren't uncommon during the 1970s as changing styles can often blend into one another. Hiromi Ohta is one such example of that fusion, between the worlds of pop music and that of the singer-songwriters that dominated the New Music scene. Having already launched her showbusiness career as a member of the singing and dancing youth troupe in the variety show Stage 101, she eventually became the most successful of the former members during her solo career. Though she didn't write her debut single "Amadare" (Raindrops), her input was noted by Kyohei Tsutsumi, who devoted a significant role in the song to the piano, her primary instrument. The motif of rain is present in the lyrics and in the music, from the small flourishes of the piano to the descending strings in the chorus. The minor key of the song gives it an air of somberness, her voice: gentle, a little frail, yet clear and persistent, deepens the effect of the lyric's description of separation and longing (seemingly a common trope in Japanese lyrics). Though released late in 1974, it eventually garnered enough attention the following year, earning her a respectable Top 20 hit in the charts as well a nomination for "Best New Artist" in the Japan Records Awards in 1975.